Regular scented candles are a huge source of indoor air pollution and they put off chemicals that are considered just as dangerous as second-hand smoke. Most candles are made of Paraffin, which is a sludge petroleum waste product and has to be deodorized and chemically bleached before it can be made into wax. The industrial bleach is 10 times stronger than your household bleach.

Based on animal studies, dioxins from bleach are believed to have the ability to cause reproductive and developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere with hormones and also cause cancer. The Environmental Protection Agency has identified dioxins as a “likely human carcinogen.”

This also creates highly toxic benzene and toluene, both known carcinogens, that are released into the air when burned. In fact, the toxins released from paraffin candles are the same as those found in diesel fuel fumes.

On top of that, although the wicks are supposed to be made with cotton and paper, many have wicks that contain heavy metals like lead and can Although lead wicks were banned lead wicks in 2003, however as much as 30% of candles sold here still have them.
And can create levels of airborne heavy metals that are 5 times the amount of lead considered hazardous for children by EPA outdoor air pollution standards. Which can be a problem for anyone especially if you're pregnant or have children. Lead exposure has been linked to hormone disruption, behavioral problems, learning disabilities, and numerous health problems.”

Many candles also contain artificial scents and dyes, which release additional chemicals when burned. (source) There is a long list of chemicals that may be present in the paraffin mixture that you breathe in when burning them:

While this is harmful for everyone, it is especially unhealthy for those suffering from allergies or serious respiratory issues like asthma.
When soot is airborne, it is subject to inhalation. Paraffin soot particles are so fine (as small as 100 nanometers) that they are able to penetrate the deepest areas of the lungs – the lower respiratory tract and alveoli – which can cause long-term damage.

In 2012, for the first time, researchers studied in detail how candle soot gets stuck in the lungs. The results show that more than half of all inhaled soot particles remain in the body. MORE THAN HALF!! The findings were published in the Journal of Aerosol Science, and the findings are especially dire when linked to other studies on the inhalation of particulate matter such as diesel soot.

Soot that gets stuck in the lungs have been widely studied in humans and animals and the effects include asthma, lung cancer, cardiovascular issues, respiratory diseases, and premature death. The World Health Organization estimates that:

“…fine particulate air pollution from soot causes about 3% of mortality from cardiopulmonary disease, about 5% of mortality from cancer of the trachea, bronchus, and lung, and about 1% of mortality from acute respiratory infections in children under 5 years old, worldwide.”

They can cause damage to the brain, lung and central nervous system, as well as cause developmental difficulties, they can also trigger asthma attacks and migraines.

Paraffin fumes have been found to cause tumors in the kidneys and liver of lab animals.”

Now you don’t have to have symptoms, just because you don’t feel it doesn’t mean it’s not harming you, some of the effects are not immediately obvious, just like smoking.

The good news is beeswax candles clean the indoor air. these candles emit negative ions, which help reduce positively charged ions in the air that are created from things like heating/cooling systems, electrical devices, typical wax candles, and the positive ions carry everything from dust to pollen to toxic mold, so it is important to reduce them and beeswax can do just that.

Beeswax candles are also inexpensive and easy to make and you can see my video on that. You want to be sure it is 100% pure beeswax whether you’re making them yourself or buying them. As some companies will use only a portion of beeswax mixed with regular paraffin, and then label them as “beeswax candles”. This isn’t what you want. Look for 100% pure.

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